Michael Phelps - 8 Golds??

[Avmenon]

I hope he gets at least 7 tho.

The last time that happened, it was practically unknown as the rest of the world was stunned by other events.

It would be nice if people remembered that Olympics was about sporting achievement.

 

[The Nomad]

[quote author=Avmenon link=topic=25985.msg646837#msg646837 date=1218866478]
I hope he gets at least 7 tho.

The last time that happened, it was practically unknown as the rest of the world was stunned by other events.

It would be nice if people remembered that Olympics was about sporting achievement.
[/quote]

He got the seventh... that has got to be one of the most controversial finishes of all time... 0.01 he won by, what a race. And I don't even like Swimming.

 

[SaintGeorge67]

I didn't see it, but if he won by 0.01 seconds how was it controversial?

 

[Marquis]

[quote author=Loch Ness Monster link=topic=25985.msg644822#msg644822 date=1218671556]
Carl Lewis won 9 x gold medals on the track.
100m, 200m, long jump.
All basically the same thing.
Running quick as fuck. No other skill but sprinting.

This man can swim obviously, but swim in several different styles.
Good luck to him.
Splitting his training between several styles.
11 golds (and more to come) in 2 olympic games.
If he comes back again, and repeats it, 20 golds will prove his legendary status.
[/quote]

That's a rather simplistic view of it.
Different events require different training regimes, just as swimming different strokes does.

 

[Rosco]

I can't be the only one who looks at Phelps and thinks that he's a Special Olympics entrant , can I ?

 

[LeTallecWiz]

8

he did

phenomenal.

avvy .. good point about Spitz and '72 .. even he wasn't allowed to savor the moment as he was whisked away from the event

 

[Avmenon]

Congratulationsto him.

I never thought Mark Spitz's record would be bettered in my lifetime.

Simply phenomenal.

 

[Ryan]

[quote author=Rosco link=topic=25985.msg647060#msg647060 date=1218891425]
I can't be the only one who looks at Phelps and thinks that he's a Special Olympics entrant , can I ?
[/quote]

Would it be the fucking wings for ears, or the tongue embedded in his bottom lip? The Jamie fucking Oliver of smimming.

And as for the others bleating on about 'best athlete ever blah blah blah'. Do me a favour. It's swimming. What's with the 74 different swimming options for each race too? The 200M breaststroke, 200M freestyle, 200M backstroke, 200M do it with your mates, 200M swin 4 different ways.

Is Usain Bolt going to get the same luxury? 'Here Usain, have a go at the 100M on 1 leg, the 100M sidways, the 100M for Jamaicans only... '

 

[Farkmaster]

[quote author=Ryan link=topic=25985.msg650131#msg650131 date=1219107608]

Is Usain Bolt going to get the same luxury? 'Here Usain, have a go at the 100M on 1 leg, the 100M sidways, the 100M for Jamaicans only... '


[/quote]

I'm not sure if you want to point to running, where an extra 100M fast gets you another gold medal, with baton another and with hurdles another...

Put quite simply, most swimmers start to specialize in events quite early on, and due to that every different stroke is at a very high level of competition. More so than say if IM was the basis for all swim meets. Within that swimmers distance specialize the same way as other sports as well, which means that there won't really be many weak swimmers in any event.

Swimming different strokes is PRECISELY like the difference between running and hopping on one leg. Different strokes have water in common, and thats about it, they are completely different skills. If they did have a hop on one foot category, it would be pretty hard for the two footed specialists to compete with the one footed specialists.

The fact that Phelp's weak events are strong enough to win, even by .01 against the worlds best is an amazing feat. You can be sick of him because you are oversaturated with his image and story, and I certainly am, but you can't discredit his achievement, even if it might in quantity be easier to achieve with swimming.

The fact is you don't see many runners winning in anything but around their distance and in their speciality, such is the level of competition.

 

[manwithnoname]

Right, so what you're saying is that his 8 Golds have nothing to do with the plethora of very similar swimmy activities he is allowed to compete in, but rather that he is the supreme athlete, and sprinters, for example, are just generally a bit lazy and can't be arsed to compete in stuff like the triple jump, hurdles, and 800 metres.

And it's coincidence that the personal record he beat was...oh wow, another coincidence!...also a fucking swimmer.

Fuck off, noone cares.

 

[Farkmaster]

[quote author=Brendan link=topic=25985.msg650302#msg650302 date=1219135933]
Right, so what you're saying is that his 8 Golds have nothing to do with the plethora of very similar swimmy activities he is allowed to compete in, but rather that he is the supreme athlete, and sprinters, for example, are just generally a bit lazy and can't be arsed to compete in stuff like the triple jump, hurdles, and 800 metres.

And it's coincidence that the personal record he beat was...oh wow, another coincidence!...also a fucking swimmer.

Fuck off, noone cares.
[/quote]

Actually that's not what I'm saying at all, and I'm well aware you don't care, though in the history of swimming and sport at large, it is quite significant.

Being excellent at one motion that moves you through water does not automatically make you excellent at another motion that does the same. There are many many decent swimmers who have not mastered all strokes. There aren't many swimmers at the highest level who can compete across many events. There are none that have dominated the way he has over the period he has in quite a competitive field, over multiple strokes.

There are more swimming events and so getting a lot of golds is more possible in swimming than in other events. The fact that he has dominated the olympics in the way that he has over two years would be recognised if it were a runner winning all the medals that they could possibly train to win, even though quantitatively it would be a fewer number. People would not say, "oh, he's running, and then he's 100 extra meters, that second medal counts less and isn't worthy of as much praise", unless they were being deliberately ignorant blowhards.

 

[Hooz]

I'm surprised no-one's mentioned that Chinese fella. I've seen him competing in almost every event.

 

[Roger REDerer]

Haha

 

[Skullflower]

 

[SummerOnions]

[quote author=Skullflower link=topic=25985.msg661320#msg661320 date=1220027334]

[/quote]

bump!

that pic is fucking hilarious

 

[LeTallecWiz]

Olympic great Michael Phelps acknowledged "regrettable" behavior and "bad judgment" after a photo in a British newspaper Sunday showed him inhaling from a marijuana pipe.

In a statement released Sunday, the swimmer who won a record eight gold medals at the Beijing Games did not dispute the authenticity of the exclusive picture published Satruday by the tabloid News of the World.

"I engaged in behavior which was regrettable and demonstrated bad judgment," Phelps said. "I'm 23 years old and despite the successes I've had in the pool, I acted in a youthful and inappropriate way, not in a manner people have come to expect from me. For this, I am sorry. I promise my fans and the public it will not happen again."

News of the World said the picture was taken during a November house party while Phelps was visiting the University of South Carolina. During that trip, he attended one of the school's football games and received a big ovation when he was introduced to the crowd.

While the newspaper did not specifically allege that Phelps was smoking pot, it did say the pipe is generally used for that purpose and anonymously quoted a partygoer who said the Olympic champion was "out of control from the moment he got there."

The party occurred nearly three months after the Olympics, while Phelps was taking a long break from training, and apparently would have no impact on the eight golds he won at Beijing. He has never tested positive for banned substances and even agreed to extra testing before the games.

Under more flexible sanctions the World Anti-Doping Agency adopted for 2009, first-time offenders who commit particularly bad infractions can face suspensions of up to four years.

The current standard for first-time offenders is a two-year ban no matter the violation.

The U.S. Olympic Committee released a statement in response to Phelps' apology Sunday.

"We are disappointed in the behavior recently exhibited by Michael Phelps," the statement said. "Michael is a role model, and he is well aware of the responsibilities and accountability that come with setting a positive example for others, particularly young people. In this instance, regrettably, he failed to fulfill those responsibilities.

"Michael has acknowledged that he made a mistake and apologized for his actions. We are confident that, going forward, Michael will consistently set the type of example we all expect from a great Olympic champion."

Phelps was in Tampa, Fla., during Super Bowl week to make promotional appearances on behalf of a sponsor. But he left the city before Sunday's game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Arizona Cardinals, abandoning his original plan to be at Raymond James Stadium.

Phelps returned to the pool a couple of weeks ago to begin preparations for this summer's world championships in Rome. He plans to take part in his first post-Olympics meet in early March, a Grand Prix event in Austin, Texas.

This isn't the first embarrassing episode for Phelps after an Olympic triumph. In 2004, a few months after winning six gold and two bronze medals in Athens, the swimmer was arrested on a drunken driving charge at age 19. He pleaded guilty and apologized for the mistake.

In his book "No Limits: The Will to Succeed," Phelps recounted how his first phone call was to his agent, and not his mother or coach Bob Bowman, because he knew they would yell at him.

Later, he called Bowman, who was supportive but told him, "Michael, just because you want to blow off some steam doesn't mean you can be an idiot."

Debbie Phelps, his mother, cried at the news of his drunken driving charge.

"That hurt worse, maybe, than anything," Phelps wrote. "I had never seen my mother that upset."

Bowman did not immediately respond to phone and e-mail messages from The Associated Press on Sunday.

Olympic teammate Dara Torres said Phelps has become such a prominent figure that everything he does is news.

However, she said: "This in no way shape or form diminishes anything he's done."

"It's sort of a double-edged sword," Torres told the AP on Sunday. "When you're recognizable, you're looked up to as a role model. He is recognizable and everything you do gets looked at and picked apart. I guess that's the price of winning 14 Olympic medals."

Jason Lezak, whose remarkable anchor leg of the 400-meter freestyle relay helped Phelps stay on course to break Mark Spitz's record in Beijing, said he was "saddened" to hear of the report.

"While I don't condone his conduct, I am a teammate and fan," Lezak said in a text message to the AP on Saturday night. "Unlike many fair-weather people, I am sticking by him. If my wife and I can help him in any way, we will. I believe he will grow from this and be better person, role model and teammate."

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

 

[bkwitche2]

Bah who give a fuck.  He's young, he was having a good time, undoubtedly the best in the world.

He can do what he likes.

 

[Brizzle]

[quote author=bkwitche link=topic=25985.msg794689#msg794689 date=1233600794]
Bah who give a fuck. He's young, he was having a good time, undoubtedly the best in the world.

He can do what he likes.
[/quote]

It will cost him a place at the next olympics so is very stupid though

 

[bkwitche2]

[quote author=Bristow link=topic=25985.msg794724#msg794724 date=1233602692]
[quote author=bkwitche link=topic=25985.msg794689#msg794689 date=1233600794]
Bah who give a fuck. He's young, he was having a good time, undoubtedly the best in the world.

He can do what he likes.
[/quote]

It will cost him a place at the next olympics so is very stupid though
[/quote]

Is that from some other article or news source? I don't really get that from the article posted above. First time offenders always get a 2 year ban it says, and 4 years is possible for "particularly bad cases" or whatever.

I think it would be harsh to consider a 23 year old smoking pot a 'particularly bad case'.

 

[Brizzle]

[quote author=bkwitche link=topic=25985.msg794854#msg794854 date=1233606625]
[quote author=Bristow link=topic=25985.msg794724#msg794724 date=1233602692]
[quote author=bkwitche link=topic=25985.msg794689#msg794689 date=1233600794]
Bah who give a fuck. He's young, he was having a good time, undoubtedly the best in the world.

He can do what he likes.
[/quote]

It will cost him a place at the next olympics so is very stupid though
[/quote]

Is that from some other article or news source? I don't really get that from the article posted above. First time offenders always get a 2 year ban it says, and 4 years is possible for "particularly bad cases" or whatever.

I think it would be harsh to consider a 23 year old smoking pot a 'particularly bad case'.
[/quote]

Not from an official source, on a guardian blog of it I was reading someone posted that a law was passed saying that all drug users got a 4 year ban.

 

[bkwitche2]

Well, a possibility then I suppose. That would be very disappointing, especially in a case like this.

 

[Brizzle]

was chatting to a couple of mates about it tonight and apparantly the 4 year ban is on performance enhancing drugs, so in this one is won't be a lengthy ban. Sanctions for cannabis (according to this link) seem to be a max of 12 months with some being as little as 1 month. He should be ok then. Silly of him to get caught doing it, but on his month off from a truely outstanding training programme he should be forgiven, what with being only 23!

http://www.fina.org/project/docs/antidoping/cases/DopingCasesReport2007.pdf

 

[Roopy]

Roopy's reaction to Phelps smoking weed: MEH.

 

[keniget]

[quote author=bkwitche link=topic=25985.msg794689#msg794689 date=1233600794]
Bah who give a fuck. He's young, he was having a good time, undoubtedly the best in the world.

He can do what he likes.
[/quote]

Exactly.

 

[The Slugmonster]

[quote author=Bristow link=topic=25985.msg794724#msg794724 date=1233602692]
[quote author=bkwitche link=topic=25985.msg794689#msg794689 date=1233600794]
Bah who give a fuck. He's young, he was having a good time, undoubtedly the best in the world.

He can do what he likes.
[/quote]

It will cost him a place at the next olympics so is very stupid though
[/quote]

Surely only if it showed up in a test. And the next olympics is 3 1/2 away.

 

[bkwitche2]

Did you read the rest of the conversation? We came to the conclusion that that wouldn't be the case.